Fahtrim

I have em & I luv em.....

Miles in Michigan

The bars (yes, not part of the frame, part of the radiator support) are about 1" square tube. The tube is attached at both ends, and could support a huge amount of weight, easily the weight of the car or the force applied when hitting a steep driveway (which can be more than the weight of the car). It's only when the tube is ruptured that they will become weak.

A tube is strong for resisting deflection for the same reason an I-beam is. They have a high moment of inertia. The material is present where the greatest stresses occur (the outer edge) and absent where the stresses are weakest (towards the center). I don't doubt you could jack up the car by these bars, when they are in good condition. Mine are worn half way through and the bottom is unable to support a load at all (when a load is placed on a beam, the bottom is in compression, the top is in tension. It'd be the opposite in this case since the force is applied upward). Imagine how weak an I-beam is when you cut it in half and try to use the top and bottom seperately. Or the difference in strength between a intact paper towel roll, and what it would be if you cut along it's length and spread the materal flat.

When the tube is weakened enough to break in the middle (or is worn completely through), it will be a cantilevered beam sticking out, supported by the radiator support. The connection to the radiator support is designed to support verticle load and horizontal load, not a torque, since the bar is attached at the upper end as well. When you apply a force at the end of a cantilevered beam though, you do get a torque at the other end, and since it is not designed to withstand a torque, it'll bend upward and possible scew up the bottom of the radiator. If it caught and bent downward it'd be even worse, since the moving car would bend it backward or rip it off.

I guess what I am trying to say is that this is not a cosmetic scrape, because it is damaging the tube in a way that causes it to not be able to withstand the forces it was designed for, and will hence exert other forces and torques on attached parts, in ways they are not designed to withstand.

My surprise over this is because I didn't realize that scraping (which I regularly ignored) would lead to the failure of this part. It's not dangerous or anything, but it is important to know that regular scraping can eventually (a few years at my rate) lead to damage the radiator support and possibly the radiator (after the tube breaks or wears through in the middle).

The [extreme stupidity] was not that I didn't get Andy's wheels sooner, but that I never looked underneath my car and instead continued to damage it, when I have heard scraping on an almost daily basis.

It seems obvious in retrospect what will happen if you scrape metal on concrete and asphalt that often.

shamam

Same post in general
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=346244

:crazy:

chuckster

David, David, David...... :nono:

I'd loose sleep for a month over that...I'd spend the money to replace them... :eek I am way too **** to let that slide "no pun intended"

tscales

Wow, I'll have to check mine out -- bad driveway at the last house.......

Tom

Skeeter1

the clinical name is "Obsessive compulsive disorder":lol:

ps... guess with my car recently being flood damaged, this seems a little trivial to be bringing up :nopity


[Modified by Skeeter1, 6:34 PM 7/20/2002]

Cyrus

Man, as one compulsive to another....that looks nasty! :eek:

sandyg

After scraping my front bumper support only once I installed a set of frame savers and do not have a single scratch since then.I would not want to leave my car like that even if I can't see the damage. I know it is there.

Shinobi'sZ

I didn't buy any until I was visiting Andy. I can't believe I didn't buy them before...they are a must and will be going on my new car too. Price per pound, per mod, they are one of the essential best mods IMO.

Smoke-N-Shot

That must happen all the time... :eek:

Andy@A&ACorvette

It's not just the damage. It's just so much easier driving around when you're not worried about the inevitable "crunch" on steep driveways etc. At the sale price, it's a no brainer.

Z06 Mike

I can actually claim to have really watched my new Frame Savers in action only minutes after being installed. I got the infamous "Service Column Lock" right in front of Andy's work bay. He went ahead and installed the Frames Savers and the Rails and we then commenced to watch them work very nicely as the car was dragged butt first onto the flatbed tow!

I also have a steep driveway where I live as well as numerous speedbumps at my office garage. These are a no-brainer mod folks. (And the wheels look kewl too!))

:cool:

Biohazard

:cry :cry :cry :cry God help us All..mine look kinda bad. :cry :cry :cry :cry

02 coupe...not too steep of a driveway...just enough... :U :U :U

nassau99

hey guys, i've lowered my car and was thinking of mounting the frame savers that i just ordered on the BOTTOM of the rails instead of the side. any problem with doing that? my thinking is it would save some wear and tear on the lower spoilers-the rollers would make contact an inch earlier, before the spoiler dragged. what do you guys think??? TIA :confused: :D

Stingray1967

OUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :eek:

fight4yourrights

The painted nose doesn't look too good either. :nono:

Tracy

I installed the Framesavers a few hours after bringing my 2003 home. On this car, I don't want the occasional scrapes I got on my 2000 before I installed 'em. And yeah, it's not that the damage is so fatal (except for the MilesMichigan car!!) but that horrible *cccrrrrunccch* noise....everyone in line at the disco turns and looks and laughs at you for running your Vette into something.....you want to get out and explain to that sweet thing in the miniskirt that "It's the low hanging frame bars!! I didn't hit anything!! I'm not drunk! I'm still cool!! The bars scrape steep driveways....honest!!!"

And guys....after you install the Framesavers, how about dabbing a little black paint on the bolts and nuts to finish the job, okay? It looks rice to have stuff bolted to your car and have the bolts show!!

mrkln

Ouch. Looks like it is time for me to give Andy a call. :yesnod:

Tormania

I've scratched mine a couple times but DAMN!!! :eek: :eek: :eek: Nothing like that!

RyanC7

yep that sucks...